Ancient Origin Surnames

Riley 1 English
From the name of the town of Ryley in Lancashire, derived from Old English ryge "rye" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Rinaldi Italian
Derived from the given name Rinaldo.

Riordan Irish
From Irish Ó Ríoghbhárdáin meaning "descendant of Rígbarddán".

Ríos Spanish
Spanish cognate of Rios.

Rios Portuguese
Originally denoted a person who lived near a river, from Portuguese rios "river", ultimately from Latin rivus.

Ripley English
From the name of various English towns, from Old English rippel "grove, thicket" and leah "woodland, clearing". A notable fictional bearer is the character Ellen Ripley from the movie Alien (1979) and its sequels.

Ritchie Scottish
From a Scottish diminutive of the given name Richard.

Ritter German
From Middle High German riter meaning "rider, knight", a cognate of Ryder.

Riva Italian
Means "bank, shore" in Italian, from Latin ripa, denoting one who lived by a river or a lake.

Rivas Spanish
Spanish form of Riva.

Rivera Spanish
From Spanish ribera meaning "bank, shore", from Latin riparius.

Rivero Spanish
Variant of Rivera.

Rivers English
Denoted a person who lived near a river, from Middle English, from Old French riviere meaning "river", from Latin riparius meaning "riverbank".

Rivière French
French cognate of Rivers.

Rizzi Italian
Variant of Ricci.

Rizzo Italian
Variant of Ricci.

Roach English
From Middle English and Old French roche meaning "rock", from Late Latin rocca, a word that may be of Celtic origin. It indicated a person who lived near a prominent rock, or who came from a town by this name (such as Les Roches in Normandy).

Robbins English
Derived from the given name Robin.

Robert French, English
From the given name Robert.

Roberts English
Means "son of Robert".

Robertsen Danish
Means "son of Robert".

Robertson English
Means "son of Robert".

Róbertsson Icelandic
Means "son of Robert".

Robertsson Swedish
Means "son of Robert".

Robin French
From the given name Robin.

Robinson English
Means "son of Robin".

Robledo Spanish
Means "oak wood" from Spanish roble "oak", ultimately from Latin robur.

Robles Spanish
Originally indicated a person who lived near an oak tree or forest, from Spanish roble "oak", from Latin robur.

Robson English
Means "son of Rob".

Rocca Italian
Italian cognate of Roach.

Rocchi Italian
Derived from the given name Rocco.

Rocco Italian
Derived from the given name Rocco.

Rocha Portuguese, Galician
Portuguese and Galician cognate of Roach.

Roche French
French cognate of Roach.

Roderick English
Derived from the given name Roderick.

Rodgers English
Derived from the given name Rodger.

Rodrigo Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Rodrigo.

Rodrigues Portuguese
Means "son of Rodrigo" in Portuguese.

Rodríguez Spanish
Means "son of Rodrigo" in Spanish. This is among the most common surnames in Spain.

Rodriguez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Rodríguez.

Rodriquez Spanish
Variant of Rodríguez.

Roger French
From the given name Roger.

Rogers English
Derived from the given name Roger.

Rogerson English
Means "son of Roger".

Roig Catalan
Means "red" in Catalan, from Latin rubeus, originally a nickname for a person with red hair or a red complexion.

Roijackers Dutch
Variant of Rooijakkers.

Roijakkers Dutch
Variant of Rooijakkers.

Rojas Spanish
Variant of Rojo.

Rojo Spanish
Means "red" in Spanish, referring to the colour of the hair or complexion.

Roldán Spanish
Derived from the given name Roldán.

Rolland French
From the given name Roland.

Rollins English
From a diminutive of the given name Roland.

Rolvsson Norwegian
Means "son of Rolf".

Roma Italian
Variant of Romano 2.

Romà Catalan
Catalan form of Romano 1 or Romano 2.

Romagna Italian
From the region of Romagna, on the Adriatic coast of Italy. It is derived from Latin Romania meaning "land of the Romans".

Romagnoli Italian
Variant of Romagna.

Román Spanish
From the given name Román.

Roman Romanian, Polish, Ukrainian
From the given name Roman.

Romano 1 Italian
Derived from the given name Romano.

Romano 2 Italian
Denoted a person from the city of Rome, either a resident or someone who visited as a pilgrim. In Calabria it was also used to designate a person from New Rome, a name for Constantinople.

Romanov m Russian
Means "son of Roman". This was the surname of the last dynasty of Russian tsars.

Romanova f Russian
Feminine form of Romanov.

Romão Portuguese
Portuguese form of Romano 1 or Romano 2.

Rome French, English
English and French form of Romano 2.

Romeijn Dutch
Derived from the given name Romein.

Romeijnders Dutch
From Dutch Romein meaning "Roman, person from Rome".

Romeijnsen Dutch
Means "son of Romein" in Dutch.

Romero Spanish
Derived from Spanish romero meaning "pilgrim to Rome".

Romijn Dutch
Derived from the given name Romein.

Romijnders Dutch
Variant of Romeijnders.

Romijnsen Dutch
Means "son of Romein" in Dutch.

Romilly English, French
Originally denoted a person who came from any of the various places in northern France called Romilly or from Romiley in England.

Rompa Dutch
Variant of Van Rompa.

Roncalli Italian
From the names of places like Ronco or Ronchi, quite common in northern Italy, derived from ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It was the surname of Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881-1963), the pope John XXIII.

Ronchi Italian
From Italian places named Ronchi, derived from ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It is most common in northern and central Italy.

Rooijakkers Dutch
Means "red field", from Dutch rood "red" and akker "field".

Roosa Dutch
From Dutch roos meaning "rose".

Roosevelt Dutch
Means "rose field" from Dutch roos "rose" and veld "field". This was the surname of American presidents Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) and Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945).

Rosa Italian, Catalan
Italian and Catalan form of Rose 1.

Rosales Spanish
Means "rose bushes" in Spanish.

Rosário Portuguese
Means "rosary" in Portuguese. This name was often given to people born on the day of the festival of Our Lady of the Rosary.

Rosario Spanish
Spanish form of Rosário.

Rose 1 English, French, German, Jewish
Means "rose" from Middle English, Old French and Middle High German rose, all from Latin rosa. All denote a person of a rosy complexion or a person who lived in an area abundant with roses. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental, from Yiddish רויז (roiz).

Rose 2 English
Derived from the feminine given name Rose.

Rosenberg German, Swedish, Jewish
Means "rose mountain" in German and Swedish. As a Swedish and Jewish name it is ornamental.

Rosenberger German, Jewish
Variant of Rosenberg.

Rosenfeld German, Jewish
Means "field of roses" in German. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.

Rossi Italian
Derived from a nickname for a red-haired person, from Italian rosso, Latin russus meaning "red". This is the most common surname in Italy.

Rossini Italian
Diminutive form of Rossi. A famous bearer was the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868).

Rostami Persian
Derived from the given name Rostam.

Rot German, Jewish
Variant of Roth.

Roth German, Jewish
From Middle High German rot meaning "red". It was originally a nickname for a person with red hair.

Rothenberg German, Jewish
From Middle High German rot meaning "red" and berg meaning "mountain". As a Jewish name it may be ornamental.

Rothschild Jewish
From Middle High German rot "red" and schilt "shield", or Yiddish רויט (roit) and שילד (shild). The famous Rothschild family of bankers took their name from a house with a red shield on it.

Rounds English
Patronymic derived from Middle English rond meaning "round, plump", ultimately from Latin rotundus.

Rousseau French
Diminutive of Roux. A famous bearer was the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) whose ideas influenced the French Revolution.

Roussel French
French form of Russell.

Roux French
Derived from Old French ros meaning "red", from Latin russus, a nickname for a red-haired person.

Rowan Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruadháin.

Rowe 2 English
From the medieval name Row, which is either a variant of Roul or short form of Roland.

Rowland English
Derived from the given name Roland.

Roxas Filipino
Filipino form of the Spanish Rojas.

Roy 1 French, English
Variant of Rey 1.

Royce English
Originally derived from the medieval given name Royse, a variant of Rose.

Royceston English
Variant of Royston.

Roydon English
Originally derived from a place name meaning "rye hill", from Old English ryge "rye" and dun "hill".

Royer French
From French roue meaning "wheel", ultimately from Latin rota, an occupational name for a wheelwright.

Royle English
Originally derived from a place name meaning "rye hill" from Old English ryge "rye" and hyll "hill".

Royston English
Originally taken from an Old English place name meaning "Royse's town". The given name Royse was a medieval variant of Rose.

Rózsa Hungarian
From the feminine given name Rózsa.

Ruane Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruadháin.

Rubio Spanish
Nickname for a person with red hair, from Latin rubeus "red".

Ruf German
From the given name Rolf.

Ruff German, English
From the given name Rolf.

Ruggeri Italian
Derived from the given name Ruggero.

Ruggiero Italian
From the given name Ruggiero.

Ruggles English
From a medieval diminutive of the given name Roger.

Ruiz Spanish
Means "son of Ruy" in Spanish.

Rundström Swedish
Ornamental name derived from Swedish rund (from Latin rotundus) meaning "round" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

Ruskin 2 English
From a diminutive of the feminine given name Rose.

Rusnak Polish
Means "Russian" in Polish.

Russel English
Variant of Russell.

Russell English
From a Norman French nickname that meant "little red one", perhaps originally describing a person with red hair.

Russo Italian
Variant of Rossi.

Rusu Romanian
From Romanian rus meaning "Russian".

Rutgers Dutch
Derived from the given name Rutger.

Rutherford Scottish
From the name of places in southern Scotland and northern England, derived from Old English hriðer meaning "cattle, ox" and ford meaning "ford, river crossing".

Rutherfurd Scottish
Variant of Rutherford.

Rutten Dutch
Derived from the given name Rutger.

Růžička m Czech
Means "little rose" in Czech.

Růžičková f Czech
Feminine form of Růžička.

Ruzsa Hungarian
Dialectical variant of Rózsa.

Ruzzier Italian
From a dialectal variant of Ruggiero. It is typical of northeastern Italy, the area around Trieste.

Ryan Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Riain, or else a simplified form of Mulryan.

Ryba um Polish, Czech
Means "fish" in Polish and Czech, an occupational name for a fisher.

Rybár m Slovak
Means "fisher" in Slovak, from ryba meaning "fish".

Rybář m Czech
Czech form of Rybár.

Rybářová f Czech
Feminine form of Rybář.

Rybárová f Slovak
Feminine form of Rybár.

Rybová f Czech
Czech feminine form of Ryba.

Ryder English
Occupational name for a mounted warrior, from Old English ridere meaning "rider".

Rye English
Topographic name. It could be a misdivision of the Middle English phrases atter ye meaning "at the island" or atter eye meaning "at the river". In some cases it merely indicated a person who lived where rye was grown or worked with rye (from Old English ryge).

Ryer German (Anglicized)
Possibly an Americanized form of Reiher.

Ryland English
From various English place names, derived from Old English ryge "rye" and land "land".

Ryley English
Variant of Riley 1.

Sachs German
Originally indicated a person from Saxony (German Sachsen). The region was named for the Germanic tribe of the Saxons, ultimately derived from the Germanic word *sahsą meaning "knife".

Sadeghi Persian
From the given name Sadegh.

Sáez Spanish
Variant of Sánchez.

Şahin Turkish
Means "hawk" in Turkish (of Persian origin), probably used to refer to someone who was a hawk tamer.

Sala Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Romanian
Occupational name for a worker at a manor house, from the Romance word sala meaning "hall, large room", of Germanic origin.

Salamon Hungarian, Polish
Derived from the given name Salamon or Salomon.

Salcedo Spanish
Derived from Latin salix meaning "willow tree". The name was originally given to one who lived near a willow tree.

Salem Arabic
From the given name Salim.

Salim Arabic
From the given name Salim.

Salinas Spanish
Occupational name for a salt worker or someone who lived bear a salt works, from Spanish salina "salt works, salt mine", ultimately from Latin sal "salt".

Salmon English, French
Derived from the given name Solomon.

Salomon French, German, Jewish
Derived from the given name Salomon or Salomo.

Salucci Italian
From Italian sale meaning "salt".

Salvador Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Salvador.

Salvage English
Variant of Savage.

Salvaggi Italian
Italian form of Savage.

Salvatici Italian
Italian form of Savage.

Salvi Italian
From the given name Salvo or Salvio.

Sampson English
Derived from a medieval form of the given name Samson.

Sams English
Derived from the given name Samuel.

Samsa Hungarian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Sámuel.

Samson English, French
Derived from the given name Samson.

Samuel English, Welsh, French, Jewish
Derived from the given name Samuel.

Samuels English
Derived from the given name Samuel.

Samuelson English
Means "son of Samuel".

Samuelsson Swedish
Means "son of Samuel".

Sánchez Spanish
Means "son of Sancho".

Sanchez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Sánchez.

Sancho Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Sancho.

Sandberg Swedish, Norwegian, Jewish
From Swedish and Norwegian sand (Old Norse sandr) meaning "sand" and berg meaning "mountain" (or in the case of the Jewish surname, from the Yiddish or German cognates).

Sander German, Danish
Derived from the given name Alexander.

Sanders English
Patronymic of the given name Sander, a medieval form of Alexander.

Sanderson English
Means "son of Alexander".

Sandford English
Indicated a person from Sandford, England, which means simply "sand ford".

Sándor Hungarian
Derived from the given name Sándor.

Sands English
From Old English, indicated the original nearer lived on sandy ground.

Sandström Swedish
From Swedish sand (Old Norse sandr) meaning "sand" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

Sandu Romanian
From the given name Sandu.

Sanford English
Variant of Sandford.

Sangster English, Scottish
Occupational name or nickname for a singer, from Old English singan "to sing, to chant".

San Nicolás Spanish
Indicated the original bearer was from a place named after Saint Nicholas.

Sansone Italian
Derived from the given name Sansone.

Santana Spanish, Portuguese
From any of the numerous places named after Saint Anna. A famous bearer is the Mexican-American musician Carlos Santana (1947-).

Santiago Spanish, Portuguese
From various Spanish and Portuguese places called Santiago.

Santini Italian
Diminutive form of Santo.

Santo Italian
Italian form of Santos.

Santoro Italian
Means "all saint's day" in Italian, a nickname for one born on that day.

Santos Portuguese, Spanish
Means "saint" in Portuguese and Spanish, ultimately from Latin sanctus. This was a nickname for a pious person.

Sanz Spanish
From the given name Sancho.

Sargent English
Variant of Sergeant.

Sargsyan Armenian
Means "son of Sargis" in Armenian.

Sarkisian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Սարգսյան (see Sargsyan).

Sarkissian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Սարգսյան (see Sargsyan).

Sarkisyan Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Սարգսյան (see Sargsyan).

Sarti Italian
Variant of Sarto.

Sartini Italian
Diminutive form of Sarto.

Sarto Italian
Occupational name meaning "tailor" in Italian, from Latin sartor, from sarcire meaning "to mend".

Sartor Italian
Variant of Sarto.

Sartore Italian
Variant of Sarto.

Sartre French
French cognate of Sarto. A famous bearer was the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980).

Sastre Spanish
Spanish cognate of Sarto.

Sault French
French cognate of Soto.

Saunders English, Scottish
Variant of Sanders.

Sauter German
Occupational name for a cobbler, from Latin sutor "sewer, cobbler".

Sauvage French
French form of Savage.

Sauvageau French
French diminutive form of Savage.

Sauvageon French
French diminutive form of Savage.

Sauvageot French
French diminutive form of Savage.

Savage English
English nickname meaning "wild, uncouth", derived from Old French salvage or sauvage meaning "untamed", ultimately from Latin silvaticus meaning "wild, from the woods".

Savege English (Rare)
Variant of Savage.

Savidge English
Variant of Savage.

Sawyer English
Occupational name meaning "sawer of wood, woodcutter" in Middle English, ultimately from Old English sagu meaning "saw". Mark Twain used it for the main character in his novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).

Scheer German, Dutch
Variant of Scherer.

Scheinberg Jewish
Ornamental name meaning "beautiful mountain" from German schön "beautiful, good, nice" and berg "mountain".

Schenck German
Variant of Schenk.

Schenk German, Dutch
From Middle High German, Middle Dutch schenke meaning "wine server" (from Old High German scenken "to pour out").

Scherer German
Occupational name for a cutter of cloth or a sheep-shearer, from Old High German skeran "to cut".

Schermer Dutch, Low German
Dutch and Low German form of Schirmer.

Schirmer German
Means "fencer, fencing master", from Old High German skirmen meaning "to defend".

Schlösser German
Variant of Schlosser.

Schlosser German
Occupational name for a locksmith, derived from Old High German sloz meaning "lock".

Schmid German
Variant of Schmidt.

Schmidt German
Occupational name derived from Middle High German smit "smith, metalworker", a cognate of Smith.

Schmitt German
Variant of Schmidt.

Schmitz German
Variant of Schmidt, originating in the Rhine area in western Germany.

Schneider German, Jewish
From German schneider or Yiddish shnayder, making it a cognate of Snyder.

Schneiders Dutch
Variant of Snyder.

Schneijder Dutch
Variant of Snyder.

Schnell German
German cognate of Snell.

Schnoor German
Variant of Schnur.

Schnur German, Jewish
From Old High German snuor meaning "rope, cord", an occupational name for a maker of rope.

Schofield English
From various northern English place names, which were derived from Old Norse skáli "hut" and Old English feld "field".

Scholz German
Variant of Schulz.

School Dutch
From Dutch school, ultimately from Latin schola meaning "school", indicating a person who worked at or lived near a school.

Schouten Dutch
Occupational name derived from Middle Dutch schout meaning "sheriff, bailiff".

Schräder Low German (Rare)
Variant of Schröder 1.

Schrader Low German
Variant of Schröder 1.

Schreiber German
German cognate of Scriven.

Schreier German, Jewish
Occupational name for a town crier, from Old High German scrian meaning "to shout, to yell".

Schrijnemakers Dutch
Occupational name for a cabinet maker, from Dutch schrijn "box, container" and maker "maker".

Schröder 1 Low German
Occupational name for a tailor, from Middle Low German schroden meaning "to cut".

Schroeder German
Variant of Schröder 1 and Schröder 2.

Schubert German
Variant of Schuchardt. This name was borne by the Austrian composer Franz Schubert (1797-1828).

Schuchard German
Variant of Schuchardt.

Schuchardt German
From Middle High German schuochwürte meaning "shoemaker, cobbler".

Schuchert German
Variant of Schuchardt.

Schuhart German
Variant of Schuchardt.

Schuhmacher German
From the Middle High German occupational name schuochmacher meaning "shoemaker".

Schuler German
Means "scholar, student" in German, ultimately from Latin schola meaning "school".

Schult Low German
Low German variant of Schulz.

Schulte Low German
Low German variant of Schulz.

Schultes German
Variant of Schulz.

Schultheis German
Variant of Schulz.

Schultheiss German
Variant of Schulz.

Schultheiß German
Variant of Schulz.

Schultz German
Variant of Schulz.

Schultze German
Variant of Schulz.

Schulz German
Occupational name derived from Middle High German schultheiße meaning "mayor, judge".

Schulze German
Variant of Schulz.

Schumacher German
Variant of Schuhmacher.

Schuster German
Means "shoemaker, cobbler", from Middle High German schuoch "shoe" and suter, from Latin sutor "sewer, cobbler".

Schuyler Dutch
Possibly a Dutch form of Schuler.

Schwartz German, Jewish
Variant of Schwarz.

Schwarz German, Jewish
Means "black" in German, from Old High German swarz. It originally described a person with black hair or a dark complexion.

Schwarzenberg German
Means "black mountain" in German.

Schwarzenegger German
From a place name, derived from Old High German swarz meaning "black" and ekka meaning "edge, corner". A famous bearer of this name is actor and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger (1947-).

Schwenke 2 German
From a given name, a Low German diminutive of Swanhild.

Scola Italian
From Italian scuola meaning "school".

Scott English, Scottish
Originally given to a person from Scotland or a person who spoke Scottish Gaelic.

Scotti Italian
From the medieval given name Francescotto, a diminutive of Francesco.

Scriven English
Occupational name meaning "writer, clerk, scribe" in Old French, derived from Latin scriba.

Scrivener English
Variant of Scriven.

Scrivenor English
Variant of Scriven.

Scrivens English
Variant of Scriven.

Sebastiani Italian
From the given name Sebastiano.

Sedláček m Czech, Slovak
Diminutive form of Sedlák.

Sedláčková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Sedláček.

Sedlák m Czech, Slovak
Means "farmer" in Czech and Slovak. A sedlák had more land than a Zahradník or a Chalupník, but less land than a Dvořák.

Sedláková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Sedlák.

Seeger German
From the given name Sieghard.

Seegers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".

Seelen Dutch
Variant of Ceelen.

Segal 1 Jewish
From the Hebrew phrase סגן לויה (seḡan Lewiya) meaning "assistant Levite".

Segers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".

Seghers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".

Seidel German
From a diminutive of the given name Siegfried.

Selby English
From the name of a village that meant "willow farm" in Old English.

Selvaggio Italian
Italian form of Savage.

Selvatici Italian
Italian form of Savage.

Sempers English
From the name of various towns named Saint Pierre in Normandy, all of which commemorate Saint Peter.

Serafim Portuguese
Derived from the given name Serafim.

Serafin Polish, Italian
Derived from the given name Serafin or Serafino.

Serafini Italian
Derived from the given name Serafino.

Sergeant English, French
Occupational name derived from Old French sergent meaning "servant", ultimately from Latin servire "to serve".